Virat Kohli's presence forces BCCI to make big change, Delhi vs Railways Ranji Trophy match to be streamed live

Virat Kohli, the former India captain, is all set to play his first Ranji Trophy match in 12 years. The right-handed batter will turn up for Delhi in the upcoming Ranji Trophy tie against Railways at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi. Earlier, it was reported that there would be no live coverage of the Ranji Trophy fixture between Delhi and Railways, and fans would be unable to catch the match on television or streaming. However, the BCCI has made a big change to the broadcast plans. Virat Kohli's presence has forced the BCCI to make a big change in the broadcast plans for the upcoming round of the Ranji Trophy. (Photo by Hindustan Times / Hindustan Times)(Hindustan Times)

At least 10,000 fans are expected to see Virat Kohli back in action in domestic cricket. The DDCA have already announced free tickets for spectators.

The Delhi versus Railways fixture is all set to be available on JioCinema after the BCCI decided to make a change to ensure fans get to see Virat Kohli's Ranji Trophy return.

However, it is not known whether the fixture will be available on live TV broadcast. Further details are expected by tomorrow, January 29.

"A decision has been taken and JioCinema will live stream the game. So all the Virat Kohli fans who are not in Delhi, need not worry. They can watch their favourite player live," a BCCI official told PTI.

Virat Kohli's return forces BCCI to make a last-minute change

For the uninitiated, in the Ranji Trophy, the BCCI generally narrows down one premier match, which is then aired on TV and a streaming app. For the upcoming round, beginning January 30, this fixture is Karnataka versus Haryana. The star attraction of this game is KL Rahul.

The other two games that were previously supposed to be only live-streamed were Punjab vs Bengal at the Eden Gardens and Baroda vs Jammu and Kashmir in Baroda.

The roster was also decided well in advance, and there were no plans for the Delhi vs Railways fixture to be available for streaming. However, Virat Kohli's presence has now made BCCI deviate from its original plans.

Virat Kohli's last Ranji Trophy match was in 2012. On Tuesday, the right-handed batter trained with the Delhi team at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. He was also seen having a lengthy nets session.

He practiced backfoot shots against the pacers and even faced left-arm spinners. For the unversed, left-arm spinners have been having the better of Kohli in the last few months.

Kohli recently endured a disappointing tour of Australia. He managed just 190 runs in 9 innings despite hitting a century in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy opener in Perth.

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